hello all,
i'm really frustrated with this base fit HU.reason>i get bored with all these songs playing repeatedly. (audio cd holds only 15-17 songs)
i tried the fm transmitter but in a busy city like chicago, its not working well.
i also tried to install the audio jack (DIY thread), but i couldn't get the wires to fit inside the back plug(the soldering machine is too big for these pins).
now i decided to look for a new mp3 player, but when i looked at the dash i realized that i need to buy the dash kit (~$50) in order to install a new mp3 player. am i wrong here? i really wish i'm. is it possible to "reuse" the factory installed dash kit?
is there any way which i didn't mention here that could help me?
btw my player is a creative M ,so the musiclink won't work (i guess)

 

check out crutchfield if you buy a HU they usually throw in the dash kit for free- i doubt they would give the fit one for free bc its so huge and "custom" but maybe they include it for like half price-
i wonder if you can also buy a sport HU from the dealer? itll prolly be xpensive but it will solve the mp3 issue-- and actually its just the cd drive that needs swapping the front panel and display are most likly the same bc its 2 pieces that have a "docking" plug between them and screwed together
(im guessing you might already have known that - but incase some1 is reading this with the same concerns)

 

hey just went to crutchfield its 25 instead of 50 for the dash piece if yuo order it with a new HU from them ( in one transaction)

 

forum member fit4kris was trying to sell his sport model HU. Not sure if he did, or if he ended up trashing it. I salvaged the center console from him, but no headunit. Shoot him a PM, it's worth a try.
I think you'd be able to pop this one in place of the base HU - like mentioned above, its the internal cd drive itself - in theory the harness itself should be the same between the base and the sport HUs... although the sport model has tweeters and is rated a 200watts, so I'm not sure that be a difference. maybe check with honda, if it's transferable, then check out ebay, or the forums here, because LOTS of people have swapped out their OEM HUs for aftermarket, and chances are you can get them at a good price, since they have no use for them.

 

just ordered the kenwood KDC-MP238 from crutchfield after reading your post. total came to ~135 (after 20off coupon) which,i think, is a good price.
will try to install it myself

 

before placing an order for the kenwood receiver i took a look at ebay but nothing showed up.
thanks for the reply

 

i cant tell u how much i have spent at CF great place to buy from - plus they include all the goodies for free lke the wire harnesses and stuff- the master sheet they give you is really easy to follow and shows you the "proper" way to do the swap and all the speakers too just incase you get ambitious

 

Is Kenwood a reputable company i couldn't find any reviews on this particular stereo kdc-mp238 (except the 2 found on crutchfield)
i saw a post on another forum, where the poster warns other users about kenwood stereos. i'm worried now
anybody have any experience with kenwood please respond

 

use an iTrip... 20 bucks on overstock.com

 

it should work out for you the screen may be hard to read w/ certain track names or diffucult to browse libraries- but if you pretty much just shuffle and skip (thats what i do) you should be satisfied-
it looks like you can add a BT or ipod adapter too later on - some have this built in but prolly not needed


have you ever done an install b4?
- my recomendation if not is just get all your wires done first inside the your house or something just use electtical tape - crimp caps and sauder is a PIA and just twisting and taping securly will give you just as good of a connection- and tape all the wires together (speakers in 1 bundle - and powers in a seperate - to minimize fuzz) the wires will prolly be all the same colors so amtching up the two adapters will be pretty easy you wont use the dimmer wire or antenna wires, or the remote turn on thats just for 2ohm setups usually

 

also with that new HU its got its own aux jack so u can use your player with just a patch cord you can get it anywhere - most common is radioshack -- but i hate going in there they never leave you alone

 

^^ thanks
abt the itrip: i think it does the same as my iriver fm transmitter did, but i keep on losing the signal.

btw...no1 answered my second question :Is Kenwood a reputable/reliable company

 

cheeze so demanding .. jk lol
and yea i thought i did answer that quesiton too
but again in a few more words:
they have been around for ever but its all in your own opinion you should like it as long as you dont get stuck on the shortcomings like the non dot-matrix display or something but its all in your head -- they make reliable stuff that will turn on when you want it too and stuff